A Game of Roses
by NefariousDreams
Summary: World of Remnant - Medieval setting Weiss is the heir to a prestigious and powerful royal family. Being the princess and only child of the Schnee name, her hand has already been promised to another, in order to reinforce and create a dynasty worth mentioning in the history books. Little does she know, that a young gardener would soon step into her life and change it completely.
1. The Red-caped Stranger

Weiss was beyond aggravated. She had just fought for a good half an hour with her father, about her not being ready to marry, how she wanted to have a say in what her life was going to be and how she didn't even have the time to get to know her fiancé altogether.  
She knew these were sullen times for women, that opposing your own blood could get you disowned, disgraced or have you end up in treacherous punishments, and yet it was there, the strong will, the need to be free, to rebel against what was planned for her, the overwhelming dream to spite whomever dared to counter her wishes.

That was, until her father caught up with her to her room after chasing her down the halls.

He found her standing on the balcony, her hands on the thick marble railing, looking out in the distance, as if lost in another world.

After their heated argument, she needed some fresh air to cool down, but it seemed that her father didn't care much for that, as he went on rambling, fury reflecting in his sharp glare and coating his face in an angry red.

"How _dare_ you flee from the conversation we were having! Is this the way to treat your father, you ungrateful child?!" He steamed, grabbing Weiss' arm tight and tugging it towards him harshly.

"OUCH! Father let go of me! It hurts!" Weiss shrieked in protest to the brute force he was using.

"And it will hurt even MORE if you don't obey my commands!"

He squeezed her arm, tightening his grip even further, as the poor princess winced in pain. Dragging her with him back to the door, he slammed it shut and threw his daughter to the floor next to it.

"This will be my last warning, Weiss. I am not a patient man and I am not going to become one just to please your whims!" He shouted, his body language becoming all the more threatening.

The young princess didn't seem to read the danger in his movements though, as she helped herself back up on her feet and stared back with an equally scary, icy glare.

"Try me!" she quite literally spat back in his face.

And that was the last straw.

A very loud slap could be heard even from the gardens below the balcony, one that sent Weiss flying for a good couple of meters. She landed on the cold, rough cobblestone floor with a sickening thud, a cry erupting from her lungs as the arm she used to protect herself from the fall sent a stab like signal to her brain, reverberating through her whole body.

Fear took hold of her as she looked back up at her father. The girl had seen him angry before, but never had he dared to lift a single finger against her.

With the slap still pulsating on her left cheek, the five fingers' print gloving in contrast to her pale skin, her father closed in again, this time drawing out the sword he so proudly wore to his side at all times, a sight that made her wince, whimper and curl up in a fetal position, her unharmed arm being the only form of protection drawn close to her face, leaving her side exposed.

The mad man swung the sword around, making sure the sharp blade would face away from his only daughter as he took aim and bashed the blunt knob of the weapon into her ribs, once, twice, the third hit landing near her lower back as the princess cried her eyes out, terrified.

It was mere seconds, but it felt like an eternity to Weiss, when he finally withdrew his weapon and slid it back into its sheath. She couldn't look at him, her sobs leaving her wounded body uncontrollably and painfully, probably due to the broken ribs and deep bruises that were left behind.

"We are done here for today. But don't think this is over. You will marry Sir Vasilias, be it the last thing you do. I gave my word to his family that you would be his bride and I AM GOING TO KEEP MY OATH, to protect our honor and the status symbol of our name. Like it or not, this is your fate. The sooner you come to terms with it, the less you'll have to suffer the consequences of your insufferable actions and insolence!"

Weiss winced again as she heard the loud slam of the door, so violent that its after quake detached a painting from the wall, the frame soon smashing on the ground.

Her sobs continued incessantly, echoing through the large room, reaching the ears of a young woman that had been attentively listening to the whole ordeal for quite a while, the face of the young gardener filled with concern, her scythe discarded next to her since long.

Ruby Rose was the daughter of a poor farmer. She barely knew how to read, write and spell her own name, let alone understand the intricacies of the life of noblemen and women. What she could understand and feel though, was the sorrow the young princess had been forced through, a burden she would not even wish onto her worst enemies. In moments like these, she was truly happy not to be highborn at all. Her mother, who had since passed when she was a child, always told her to treat people and things with dearest care and respect. Violence was the way of cold hearted beasts, men that turned into animals as soon as they were given a weapon and a battlefield, attracting yet more Grimm that would join in unison to the battle screams, fear and destruction that followed. She taught her how to love and how to deal with the most impossible situations. This is why she owed her so much and wore her cloak at work… and at all times, really. In a way, it made her feel like her mother never left her and reinforced the bond they shared. She wore it with pride every day, and now, as she looked up at the fancy balcony, her hands traced the hem of its cloth.

"What would mom do?" She pondered, whispering to herself, as a thought started to form in her mind.

She picked up her second most beloved object: her red colored scythe, disappearing into a burst of rose petals, the semblance being her signature whenever she would leave for a new destination.

Weiss had forced herself …more like crawled, to the king sized bed that towered over the room. With every brink of hope gone, she sank deeper into the mattress, abandoning herself to her impending and unchangeable fate. She dared not imagine what else her father could have done if she disobeyed him again.  
He was the ruler of Atlas. No one could oppose him. He had started _wars_ to defend their name and would showcase his power to anyone who got in his way, endless fleets and armies marching over burnt towns. Hell, she couldn't remember the last time her father actually lost a battle. It used to be something she could take pride in, but now more than ever did she realize how these facts were all but glorious. Her father was a heartless, ruthless warmonger, who threatened people into submission and adulation. If anything, it was only a matter of time, before he would end up with a knife in his throat, for all the children he slaughtered, the lives he destroyed, the lands and possessions he took and hopefully: for the way he treated her.  
Weiss felt empty, broken and inclined to hate the man related to her, who had so simply, without a second thought, beaten her to a pulp for not turning out how he expected her to be. Not that she ever felt much love for him to begin with, but if there had ever been any, it was gone now.

The lively rustling of leaves broke her depressing train of thought and made her alert of someone or something nestling in the tree adjacent to her balcony.  
As her breath hitched in her throat at the noise, Weiss tried to strain her eyes to see in the darker shade brought by the evening. A slim but elegant figure had jumped atop the edge of the marble railing. From the outlines, she could tell that the intruder wore a cloak. With the new moon (typically shattered, a focal point in the world of Remnant) up high in the sky being the only source of light to distinguish any colors of the stranger's wear, Weiss was able to identify a faint shade of dark red, one that must have looked very bright, like a blood spurt on a white cloth, during the daytime.

The shady figure left what looked like a white rose along with a tiny piece of paper or cloth – whichever it was, she couldn't tell from the distance – dissipating into a whirlwind of rose petals soon after. Before moving any closer to the suspicious items, she waited several minutes, unsure about whether or not she should approach them at all. It could be a trap or an assassin sent out to terminate her, seen how many foes her family seemed to gain every day and what better way to harm the old Schnee ruler than to kill his one and only heir with a trick like this one. Weiss knew better than to fall for a trap this obvious. She quickly lurched forward, the pain still stabbing her sides and lower back, as she reached under the bed and pulled out the stolen rapier, hiding it behind her back. The lightweight sword belonged to her father's military parade outfit, but she had laid her eyes on it since its first appearance, when she was just five years old; she kept training with it in secret, reading through tomes about fencing and dueling, sharpening the previously blunt and only ornamental blade of the sword into a dangerous tool, both ideal for offense and defense. It could easily cut through anything thicker than a chair's leg. One of the many chairs and pieces of furniture in her room had been tested on with a rather pleasant result. To avoid being found out, she hired a specialized craftsman and a blacksmith to put a long, robust nail or two where needed, reassembling the broken piece and making it hardly noticeable that it ever withheld any kind of damage at all.

As she closed in to the doors of the balcony, she hid behind the curtains and slowly creaked the frames open. Her stern blue eyes never faltering, she kept an attentive gaze on the tree and her surroundings. Nothing in sight. Careful to not let her guard down, she approached the items, limping a bit but sword held high in front of her. Her free hand was able to grab the note and rose from the cold surface. Not a second later, she rushed back inside, shutting the doors behind her.  
Curiosity washed over her as she analyzed the objects at hand, turning them around over and over, checking for powders or poisons. Finding no such things, she looked at the piece of paper first. It had something scribbled on it, and that was putting it kindly. The person, who miserably attempted to write on it, not only had a chicken scratch kind of handwriting, but also lacked in basic literacy, as it was impossible to decipher what the distorted letters on the paper were supposed to mean. Weiss kept glaring at them, trying to put them together in any possible way. Were they a hidden message? Some sort of secret code? Who was the mysterious red-cloaked individual? So many questions left unanswered.  
The whole thing was starting to frustrate her, nagging her to a point where she couldn't bring her logic thinking to work anymore. Giving up on the piece of paper, she looked at the white rose instead. The petals were immensely soft and silky at the barest touch, its fragrance sweetly caressing the heiress' senses. Who could have gifted her with a rose this rare? That same person even went through all the trouble of removing the thorns that were evidently present on the stem of the flower. She unconsciously held the gift close to her heart. It was certain now; this person wasn't trying to threaten her at all, if anything, she seemed to have a secret admirer.

A small blush crept its way on the princess' cheeks, leading her gaze back to the windowed doors of the balcony. She didn't really know what to make of the rose or the feelings behind it, but the very least she could do was respect the romantic and loving sentiment of her pursuer.  
She settled for placing the white rose in a small crystal vase on her dressing table. If she were to ever encounter the mysterious admirer again, she would thank them properly and perhaps ask for the meaning behind the words on the unreadable paper that was left with it.

Soon enough, exhaustion took over the young, injured princess, having her slip back in under the warm covers of her royal bed. She fell asleep while staring at the rose.

"Maybe there is still some hope to get out of this" she thought, before drifting off into deep sleep.


	2. A Loving Collision

A lot of nightmares plagued the poor girl's sleep, making her turn and in return, sending the throbbing pain of her wounds into her dream, translating as a hit from a monstrous creature that resembled a ghoul or some sort of human shaped Grimm. The horrible looking creature leaned in closer, its foul breath mere inches from Weiss' neck. This was hell, it had to be; the cocktail of negative emotions prolonging her struggle, trying to break away from the torture chamber's table she was hooked on. No matter how much she squirmed or wailed, the creature would not budge nor get away from her, striking her side once more.

" _Give up, this is your fate. You can't escape it!_ " the monster spoke.

She knew that voice. It was the voice of her father, distorted slightly by a demonic trait in it.

" _You are my puppet. Puppets have no will. I will do as I please with you!_ "

She tried to scream, no sound coming from her throat since the creature would keep whipping at her thorax, knocking the wind out of her.  
Her face soaked in tears and blood, she was really about to give up, to stop caring. Letting the pain overwhelm her and turn her into a dull, motionless object seemed far too easy at this point. Did she have any other options or even the will to fight back left in her?

It was right then that a shadow could be seen in one corner of the room. It quickly leapt across the chamber, charging full-force into the Grimm being her father had turned into. The Grimm's skull-like deformed mask fell off, revealing the mad visage of her parent, looking exactly the way it had been the moment preceding her beating. The cloaked figure was drowning him in rose petals, as absurd as it looked.

"… _Who are you_?" She managed to mutter out.

The cloaked figure became blurry, as she felt it opening her restrains, releasing her from the inhuman torture device, her vision turning darker as the heiress passed out on the spot.

Weiss woke up with a start, breathing heavily and frantically looking around the room, until it hit her. It was just a bizarre dream. One she could barely piece together now that she had awoken from her slumber.

A servant humbly strolled into the room, probably sent by her father to check up on her.  
The middle aged lady asked her how she was feeling and told her she was there to tend to her wounds. Weiss turned around to show where the bruises began, slipping her nightgown down slightly, refusing to look at them or the woman that had come to help. She assumed that, regardless of her father's hate for her, she still needed to be able to wear a corset and bear children, for the ceremony was merely one week away, now that strings had been pulled to accelerate the process of having her married. It was his way of doing: if something persistently kept opposing his plans or intentions, he would find the hastiest and harshest solution to be done with it. This way, little could bother him when the deed was done. A revolting feeling overwhelmed Weiss.

" _Was this the way he treated mother?_ "

From what she could gather, her mother used to be a head-strong woman, a perfect match for her father… except for the fact that two personalities that similar don't match very well for too long. They had told her that her mother died during childbirth, which wasn't uncommon given how this seemed to be an everyday occurrence, yet somehow she deeply doubted this was the case. Now that her father had shown her his worst side, she started to fear how her mother's death might have been purposefully intended and schemed after Weiss was born …Maybe for not giving him a male heir, or maybe just for stubbornly backing an idea that displeased or didn't sit well with her father.  
She felt the nausea punch back into her stomach; very much in sync with the awful odor the ointments gave off when applied to her purple, bruised ribs and back.

Ruby felt like she might have dared a little too much the previous night, leaving behind those presents in an attempt to cheer up the sorrowful princess. She could tell from afar how confused the young woman looked when she saw the items and how carefully she approached them with a sword drawn. It really looked like she had never received any love letters, loving word or gift whatsoever from other princes or high noble men. It was no wonder, given how Lord Jacques Schnee kept her sealed up and sheltered possessively within the keep. She was ready to bet on her own life, that the princess had hardly ever spoken to anyone outside the house servants. She looked like a frail little bird, trapped in a cage of luxurious spoils, the unhappiness that came with it very evident by yesterday's shouts and unfolding of events. She could swear that she heard things – or even the princess herself – being thrown around the room, a thought that sparked deep anger in her. Of course, it was none of Ruby's business, what did or didn't happen inside the walls of their royal home, but if there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was unnecessary violence, especially when coming from the people who were supposed to teach you love. Her sister Yang had taught her, in the wake of her mother's death and to fill in her upbringing, to never hit or harm the people you held dear and to use violence just as an extreme counter measure, when men were harassing, molesting or threatening her well-being.  
Ruby had tried to convey feelings of reassurance and hope on the piece of paper she had left behind; although it was apparent how she hadn't got the slightest clue about what she was doing while mimicking the gestures noblemen did when writing with quill and ink. Ink was also not an item she could afford, so she opted to use a chicken feather and oil extracted from a Grimm's liver. She had written something that resembled an "o" and a "p", because she was sure there was one of each in "hope". There was no real way to tell without a grand master to help her out. She had also scribbled "fr", the only letters she knew that could be in "fear". It was a stretch, or better yet, a delusion, to say that Weiss would have understood the final message.

" _Don't be afraid, there is always hope._ "

Ruby let out a heavy sigh and got up to ready herself for work, knowing the eldest gardener would load her with lots of tasks once more.  
Waving off her father and half-sister, she made a dash for the warehouse of the Schnee keep, where she met up with the old man. All the while, she couldn't get the princess out of her head.  
Work was something that really bored her, partially because she was never allowed to do as she pleased and otherwise for the workload given to her. One of her favorite activities was hunting with her sister. She sharpened her oversized scythe and looked at it, remembering the times she used it as a weapon to strike down a giant Boarbatusk, coming home with a trophy that made her dad proud of her. Hunting brought a necessary amount of extra money to them, as they could sell the tusks, teeth, body parts and other materials of the Grimm to afford food stock and pelts for the winter.

Snapping out of the memory, Ruby went over the tasks she had to do for today: trim some of the bushes near the garden's famous maze, plant some new seeds for red and pink roses around the edges of the high gardens and – of course – steal the cookies from the castle's kitchen. Actually, no. That was not something she was supposed to do, but she did it regardless, because who would notice if one or two went missing… they were baking loads of new ones each morning. No one ever complained, so she wasn't wasting an opportunity to have those cookies as breakfast.

After her primary tasks and the cookie eating had been completed, she eagerly rushed over under the princess' balcony, pretending to plow the ground below it to plant something, listening for any sign of her presence inside the room.

Weiss was not in her room at all. She had gone to the keep's library for her private study session with Grand Master Bartholomeow Oobleck. He was the hardest to follow, out of all her teachers. His knowledge about diplomacy, history, geography, politics and the Grimm in general seemed to be a never-ending cascade of words flowing out of his mouth, fueled by whatever devil he had in him for not taking any time to breathe between one sentence and another. Since court life was very boring, Weiss loved to get lost in studying. Knowledge appealed to her the same way those old, dusty books seemed to somehow belong to the organized shelves of the magnificent, humongous library.  
The reason her father had her schooled, was not only to impress some powerful men at court, but also to have Weiss not embarrass herself whenever an important guest with a witty sense of humor would be around during supper. As a matter of fact, she usually beat them at their own game, having them sit back surrounded by an awkward silence, before they would resume less interesting conversations with her father.  
Anyway, today, out of all days, the heiress seemed to be distracted by a myriad of thoughts. There was the red caped admirer, the upcoming wedding she wanted to flee from, her nightmare and her wounds: two of them painful reminders to how she could not trust her own blood anymore.

Master Oobleck noticed the young woman distractedly sketching a hooded prince giving a flower to a young princess that, not surprisingly, resembled Weiss in every aspect.  
He cleared his throat to try and catch her attention, with little success. Silently approaching the girl, he tapped her shoulder and took advantage of her distraction (looking up at her teacher) to confiscate the scroll she used for notes, now adorned with the silly drawing.

"What's this, young lady? Thinking about a loving prince out of a novel rather than class, are we?"

Weiss blushed and immediately apologized, looking down at the desk, dwelling with her embarrassment.

"I'm sure you understand your father won't be very happy about this."

Her eyes shot up in alarm, panic rushing through her, terrified of what he might do if he found out about her not listening to the teacher or worse, her red caped pursuer.

"Please don't! I promise I'll pay attention. It's just… I didn't mean to…" She was at a loss of words. Master Oobleck softened up a little, seeing how her reaction had changed drastically since their last interruption during the prior week's lesson, where she just grumbled a few excuses with annoyance.

"I do take it that there is a lot on your mind, especially escaping reality when being forced into marriage at your age. I don't expect any other sixteen, or seventeen year old like yourself, to act any different, given that there isn't really much room left for romance or dreaming of a better future. I'll let this slide." He concluded, "But on one condition: please do try to indulge in your creative hobby outside of class. I'm sure you do have a lot of spare time on your hands for this."

That said, he gave the scroll back to the girl and she promised once more to behave, thanking him.

Ruby was pretty disappointed that the princess didn't seem to be in at all. After waiting for an hour, she gave up and just slowly walked back, heading for the other side of the gardens, her cloak covering her form as she walked away.

Weiss had just returned from her class, when she spotted something from the corner of her eye, through her peripheral vision. As she turned around, she saw a person wearing a red mantle or what looked like it, nearly fading, in the distant part of the garden.

"It's him!" she stated, assuming her secret admirer was a man.

That was enough to send her running down the halls of the castle, skipping stairs on the way down to the gardens, servants moving away confused as she dashed and jumped on her glyphs with her semblance. She almost fell at one point when her bruises began to ache again.

"Damn!" She screamed at herself "Not now!" The heiress was dying to know who this mysterious person was and why out of all people, they had left a flower on her balcony and not someone else's.

As she caught up with the wandering figure, Weiss lost control over her balance while bouncing off a glyph, distracted by her injuries randomly stabbing her when she least expected it.

Ruby had almost reached the main plaza where all the servants and artisans of the keep gathered, when she heard something approaching, or better, the air whipping behind her as if someone was about to-

BAM.

Someone actually did just run, or crash, into her. The impact was so strong and sudden that it sent both girls flying in the air, landing and rolling on the dirty ground, in the mud near the barn where farmers kept most animals. Both girls groaned in pain and tried to get back up. Ruby had hit her head slightly and was confused about who could be in such a rush at that time of the day. Only when she looked up did she realize who the girl in white, now covered in mud, was.

Weiss profusely apologized for running into her supposed "prince" only to notice that under the red, very stained cloak laid a girl perhaps two years younger than her in age.

"Oh."

The heiress tried to recompose herself. "I mistook you for someone else. Don't mind me interrupting your day, servant. Keep moving." Her flushed face giving away how much shame was truly boiling within her.

"Wait!" Shouted Ruby, pulling back the pale girl by grabbing her arm.

"Such insolence! Get your hands off me! I already apologized, what else could you possibly want, commoner?!"

Ruby was a bit taken aback by her aggressive reaction, but never the less, she asked cautiously: "Sorry, I didn't mean to break any etiquette or anything like that. You are Weiss, right? The Schnee princess of the great castle I work for… I'm Ruby, the gardener's assistant. Nice to meet you!"

The heiress stared at her incredulously. Did she expect a handshake or something? The two were on completely different levels. They weren't even supposed to be casually talking to each other, let alone exchanging handshakes or introductions. This was far beyond ridiculous. If her father caught her holding hands with a farmer girl and rolling around with her in the mud that was it for Weiss, she'd be done for!

"Hmpf!"

Weiss turned around filled with disappointment, annoyance and shame.  
She would have to come up with a really good excuse for having her clothes reduced to this pitiful state.

The dark haired girl with red highlights caught up with her again, trying to initiate the conversation once more.

"Can we be friends? I'd love to braid your hair, it's incredibly pretty!"

The heiress' hair was a mess at the moment, some strands sticking out of her side ponytail and her tiara lost God knows where. Was this kid making fun of her? Or was she just this thick about not understanding the circumstances?

"Look, gardener girl– Ruby, whatever! I don't have time to play games with you. We live on two different planets, do you get it? If my father saw you talking to me and I'd tell him you did this" Weiss gestured at her dirty clothes and hair "He would probably flay you alive. Not even kidding. And even if, let's say, you were at my level in any way, I don't think I'd want to be your friend. We just crashed into each other! Is that how you make proper friends? That sounds quite awful to me." She retorted, killing the younger girl's smile slowly, but surely.

The princess was about to turn and leave for good, when Ruby tried to play her last wild card.

"Did you get the rose and the note I left you?"

That made Weiss freeze on the spot; an interesting pun could be made, given that her family emblem was an ice crystal.

She turned around to double check she heard this right.

"That was _you_?" No. She didn't want to believe any of it. This was all some terrible farmer girl's prank and she was being made the laughing stock, the next ongoing joke of low class drunks in the nearby taverns.

"Yes, it was me. I couldn't happen but notice how your father treated you and I felt like I needed to- "

Ruby didn't get to finish her sentence, the now fuming heiress cutting her off with her own rage.

"My father will have your head for this! How dare you mock me and make fun of my feelings! Feelings that you won't probably ever grasp or understand in any way! Get away from me, freak!" and with that, Weiss physically pushed Ruby as hard as she could. She fell on her bum and tried to stutter a coherent response, failing to do so sporadically.

The heiress stormed off, too ticked off for her own good. She needed to get away from this crazy girl.

Ruby just chased after her, calling her name out loud, hoping she would listen.

"Weiss! Wait! I wasn't making fun of you at all! You completely misunderstood me! The note… I can't write, but I wanted to tell you not to lose hope! Not to be afraid! Your father is a terrible man for doing what he did to you. I was there… I didn't see it with my eyes, but I could make out some of it and it sounded horrible! I thought that giving you that rose would have made your day better… I wasn't trying to hurt you even more!"

They were at the entrance to the stair well now. Weiss had listened and as much as the girl's intentions sounded sincere, she had a hard time believing them.

"I don't know what you think you were doing, but this is not how I wanted for someone to care about me. I prayed, day and night, to have a person with a noble heart get me out of this place and take me far, far away from here, from this stupid arranged marriage I'll be forced to endure, and what have the Gods sent me? You! They're making a fool out of me! The joke's on the princess!"

Ruby's confidence quickly deflated, thinking that, maybe, if she had been a guy, this would have played differently.

"You have no clue Ruby, no idea what that monster of a man is plotting in my regard and even if you did, there is nothing you could possibly do to help me. Please return to your gardening or whatever activity you do in this castle and for the love of the Gods, do learn to address people properly. We are not close enough for you to be calling me by my first name. It's your highness, not Weiss." She exhaustively explained.

The girl seemed to have none of it though, and kept insisting to be friends.

"Wei- I mean, your highness, I apologize for my behavior. I know it was reckless and perhaps a bit stupid…"

"You mean naïve." She corrected.

"…Uh, naa-if?" Ruby repeated, insecurity shaking her voice at the sound of the unknown word.

"Are you trying my patience, gardener girl? Seriously, I don't expect you to be schooled, but to be this ignorant… It stands for a person doing an action out of good will or bravery, without really thinking that there may be darker, deeper or shadier consequences to their actions. A good example could be if I were to be a thief and lure you into an alley, promising you money or food and you would just follow along, clueless and trusting. That would make you naïve."

"…Ohh, okay. Thank you for explaining it to me. Yeah, I'm not very bright. I'm sorry… I always wanted to learn to read though. I heard books contain amazing stories about legendary warriors and adventurers! I'd love to-"

The girls' chit chatting got interrupted all too soon by a servant gasping and seeing how ripped and filthy the heiress' clothes had gotten. Seeing the other girl in a similar condition, she had a good hint as to who could have been the culprit behind the princess' poor condition. The woman rushed back inside and up the stairs. She was going to tell Lord Schnee about this.

Weiss' eyes went wide, understanding the depth of the situation. With a sudden switch of moods, she hissed back at the young gardener.

"You DOLT! You should have left when I asked you to! Look at what you've gotten me into! This is your last chance: leave now, or I will make sure that either my father or the guards will make you leave for good." And with those last words, the princess disappeared behind the walls of the keep, hurrying after the startled servant.

The dark haired girl quickly paced away from the castle, foreseeing how much trouble this was going to stir for her and the heiress. This wasn't going to end well.

Just before exiting the outer walls of the castle, Ruby felt something pinch her back inside the red cloak. Feeling around for the source of the stinging, she found that the heiress' tiara had gotten stuck in the red fabric. She carefully extracted it and moved it between her fingers, the glistening, tiny diamonds on the circled ornament reflecting the rays of the setting sun. When the right time came around, she would definitely give it back to her princess.

She tucked the precious object in one of her pockets, proceeding along her path.


	3. An Interesting Development

Ruby wasn't very happy… her high spirits had left her. She fucked up, big time.  
There was no telling if the heiress would ever talk to her again after that and she was probably right: there was nothing Ruby could concretely do to change Weiss' situation. She wasn't prince charming and couldn't exactly run away with her and provide her a with better life, one still filled with the spoils and comforts of royalty but without the being caged part; besides, even if she was and she could provide for all of it, her father would come for her and take her back. The only way for him to leave her alone, was either killing him or for him to disown her, which could happen for many reasons, but just the most scandalous seemed to flood Ruby's mind, one of which was Weiss having her babies.  
She wasn't a guy and there was no reason for her to be blushing this hard, but something about that thought made her feel flustered all over. She smacked her cheeks lightly to snap her head out of the weird place it had gotten to, going back to the main issue: Weiss was going to be punished, or else, there was the chance of a guard being sent out to _deal_ with Ruby because of what had happened. Honestly, she would not blame the heiress for trying to fault her solely to get out of the bad spot she was in. It was understandable, and they were by no means friends… yet.

On her way home, Ruby noticed a group of four guards marching towards the little wooden house where she lived with her father and Yang. They stopped right in front of the porch, one of them knocking on the door loudly, demanding to see the head of the family.

She hid behind a nearby bush, watching the scene unfold from a safe distance.

"Mr. Xiao Long. Open up. Orders from the Schnee lordship!" The man commanded.

The door slowly creaked open, the blond, confused man of the house emerging from the dark, staring back at the guards.

"Can I help you?" His voice was filled with concern.

"We are looking for a young girl named Ruby Rose. She is being summoned by the high court to attend a trial for accusations of misconduct and endangerment of her highness, Princess Weiss Schnee."

This was serious. He knew Ruby was a klutz and would at times behave improperly or get in trouble, but not like this. What had she done to upset the higher ups this bad?

"She is not in at the moment, but should return from her job at the gardens anytime soon. Are you sure she isn't at the castle?" He questioned, hoping to win his daughter some time.

"No. She was not found in the royal gardens, nor anywhere near the Schnee keep." The man went on with his speech. "In absence of the accused party, the crime's prosecution falls directly on the guardian or parent responsible for the child. You need to come with us, Mr. Xiao Long.

That was it. She wasn't going to sit still as they abducted her father because of something she had to claim responsibility for. The image of her father rotting in a dungeon's prison cell just didn't sit well with her. She was going to sort this out, possibly, without getting anyone else involved.

The naïve airhead stepped out of her hiding spot and waved her arms at the guards.

"Leave him alone! I'm over here! He has nothing to do with this!"

"Ruby!" her father yelled back at her. The guards took hold of the girl and proceeded to march back to the castle with his daughter.

"I'm gonna be okay dad! Don't worry about this! It's all a big misunderstanding!" she tried to reassure him.

He doubted she was going to be okay. The Schnee family was well known for not taking these matters lightly. He tried to follow the men, but one of them turned around, pointing his spear at him.

"No family allowed during the trial, unless when asked to answer for the child's crimes in their absence. High orders from Lord Schnee.  
"It never plays well when there is family in the same room as the accused party."

And with that, Taiyang had to step back; his fists clenched tight, showing white knuckles of unexpressed anger.

"Please don't hurt my daughter" It came out with a mixture of anger and fear, sounding harsh but lacking any insulting words.

The guard just stared at him briefly before rejoining the already far group.

Nothing good would come of this. He just knew, as Yang approached with questioning, angry eyes.

"What was that about? Where are they taking Ruby?"

Questions he would have to answer after dragging his eldest daughter inside the house.

Court was always a place that felt out of place to the dark haired girl. She felt the walls of the audition hall closing in, a common side effect of stress and anxiety, for she had to wait so that every party was sitting down inside the large room, the courts people sitting behind her impatiently as audience of the unique event about to happen.

The first person to walk into the room, causing the chatter of the audience to subside, was Weiss herself. She had a look of defeat on her face, dark circles looming under her eyes as if she had been crying and yelling and struggling from when she got back to the caste, up until now. She sat down on the elegant chair to the left of her father's still empty throne, her gaze fixed on the floor. She obviously got cleaned up and changed into another outfit, one that looked almost a bit too summery for the chilly autumn season they were in. It was a white, frilly dress that could be unbuttoned easily from her back. Considering the formal attire and over-covered dresses that everyone else in the room was wearing, it looked more than a little out of place.  
A few minutes had passed, creating an almost tangible tension in the air. The silence was replaced by more murmurs and worry, until the lord of the castle solemnly walked in through slow, perfectly drawn steps leading him to the throne. He sat down and crackled his wrists as he stretched them over the throne's arms. The whole room had shifted its attention to him now, his deep, rumbling voice breaking the ice.

"We are all here gathered today, to resolve this case of aggravated assault towards my daughter, Weiss Schnee."

Ruby was placed on the pedestal where criminals usually awaited their sentence, still wearing her dirt covered clothes; the mud had become dry and dusty, leaving the guards to dust their hands after they were done dealing with her.

"I hereby stand as judge, to ensure justice will be carried out properly, as will the appropriate punishment once liability is confirmed or denied for this crime." He took a moment to clear his throat and begin with the act that he had carefully planned for the occasion.

"How do you respond to this accusation, Ruby Rose?" The lord gestured for her to talk.

"I…" The room was so silent; she could hear her own voice echo down the halls of the massive building. She gulped and took a step forward, deciding to stick for the truth, not knowing what kind of story Weiss had told her father.

"…It was an accident, my lord. We never meant to bump into each other the way we did."

The lord looked rather apathetic in regards to her statement, sizing up his words before formulating a schemed, unjust reply.

"So what you are saying is, you just happened to run into my daughter on your way to work?"

Ruby interjected "Not exactly. It was more like…" She wanted to say that Weiss had actually run into her, but seen how inconvenient and unwise that would sound, she hesitated to finish her sentence.

Jacques went on anyway, continuing his accusation.

"So you claim no responsibility for this?" A gesture of his hand had a guard pry Weiss' arms apart, holding them still, so that she could not put up any resistance. Another guard unbuttoned her dress and exposed the now more than livid, swollen bruises protruding slightly from her ribs and back.

Incredulous gasps and negative shouts rose from the audience.

"NO!" Ruby yelled back, once she realized what this meant, disgusted that the evil lord would even try to pin his wrongdoings on her. "YOU did that! Not me!"

" _Excuse me?_ " He voiced, deeply enough to send a shudder down Ruby's spine. "Are you accusing me of beating my own daughter? And what absurd reason would I have to do something like that?"

People were intensely glaring at the dark haired girl.

"I don't know what reasons you could possibly have, lord Schnee. I do not live at your court, I am not part of your family, nor am I an eavesdropping servant knowing all the gossip going around behind these walls. I just work as a gardener and during one of my shifts, I heard your yells coming from Weiss' balcony, things or perhaps even her being thrown, whimpers and cries making me worried sick about what could have happened. I do not know the princess either, but if you knew me any better, you would know how much I despise violence, the domestic kind hitting a really sore spot in my heart."

She paused briefly to catch her breath and concluded: "If you want to use me as a scapegoat for your sins, go ahead and do so. But I stand by the truth and the truth only."

The lord of the castle was livid with anger, ready to snap at the rebellious girl and have her head, when a tall blonde sat up from the audience.

"Like my sister said. If you knew her any better, you would know she is incapable of doing something like this." Yang stepped forth, fists at her sides, her favorite hunting gloves covering them.

"Yang! What are you doing here?" Ruby sure was happy to hear her big sis had come to aid the dead end she was facing.

"Dad told me some men abducted you with some pathetic sounding excuses. Did you really expect me not to come rescue you?"

Guards had already surrounded her at a safe distance, blocking her way to Ruby and the way out, weapons drawn and ready for a fight.

"It seems I'm not very welcome." The obvious statement reinforced the tension in the air. "If I have to kick your ass, to get my sister out of here then so be it!"

Things were about to break lose and get really, really bad really fast.

Lord Schnee got up from his throne and drew his own sword; maybe he would actually get to channel his anger in a productive way and be over this farce at once. This was much quicker than the long, boring plan he had come up with.

"You dare threaten a lord in his house?!"

Yang just indifferently stared at him; she liked this guy less and less by the minute.

"You can drop your stupid, rightful act Schnee. No one is buying it anyway."

This only served to piss him off even further.

"You insolent brat! I will teach you some respect! You two are now officially pronounced enemies of house Schnee! Guards, get them!" he swore.

Yang motioned a taunt with her hand, secured her gloves and pulled out her weapon: a brass knuckle for each fist.

"No, father, stop! Enough of this!" Weiss cried in vain, as the guards moved from her side and let her drop to her knees, half undressed. Her pleas went unheard, as the first clash of a sword unto solid rock cut the silence, spreading panic through the room, the audience fleeing in every direction.

This was all her fault. She hadn't been strong enough to stand up against her father and now, these two girls would be slaughtered for no reason whatsoever.  
The moment Lord Schnee had heard the maid's report; he made it his duty to get his daughter back _in check_. Yelling, berating, smacking her already sore, previous wounds… and blackmailing her of course. If she dared say a word to defend this girl, hell, if she even dared look at her again during the trial, he swore on her mother's grave, that would be the last time Weiss would see the light. The dungeons of the castle would become her new home and he promised to torture her, break her until there wasn't an ounce of willpower left in her body and soul. Basically, he would make her nightmare come true and she wasn't so sure her red caped prince would come save her this time, in the real world.  
She had only yelled for him to stop because she didn't want to see her die in front of her eyes: the only person that ever cared for her.  
The heiress might have been cold, angsty, angry and unkind, but she wasn't a monster deep down. She wasn't like her father. Even though Ruby was just a girl, the rose had meant something to Weiss. A kind gesture that would have the red caped gardener killed now.

Yang was incredibly agile for a woman with such a big bust. A sparring and combat master would think that such a physique was unfitting, unbalanced for any kind of fight, yet there she was, defying the laws of gravity, dodging blows with pirouettes and flips, yanking the guard's weapons out of their hands, gripping the sharp edges of swords and the wooden rods of spears, deviating their course as smoothly as water flowing in a river. For the most, it almost seemed like she was playing with them, waiting for the right time to strike. One of the guards managed to breach into her personal space enough to cut off a small strand of hair from the blonde's wild mane. That's what did it.  
The brawler's eyes turned from purple to red, her fists clenching harder as she punched the offender in the stomach, sending him flying into the empty seats stretching on each side. With her fiery semblance activated, kicks and bone-cracking punches were handed out with such fierce that all ten guards that had tried to near the fiery blonde were now either passed out on the floor or between the crushed rows where the audience sat.  
More guards pushed into the room, commanders yelling to get them both.

"Ruby where is your scythe?! We need to get out of here!" Yang turned around to look at her sister. What she saw made her guts drop and cheeks go pale.

Her sister had been cornered, her back against a column with Lord Schnee pointing the tip of his sword against her carotid artery, a sadistic grin radiating from the evil man.

"SIS!"

Yang moved in a dash to rescue her beloved sister, only to come to a full halt by the lord threatening to push the sword even further.

"Take one step further and she is dead"

The pointy tip of the sharp weapon had sunk in Ruby's flesh already, not too deep to wound her fatally, but merely enough to make blood pool and descend in the form of a small streak down her neck.

"Father, please let her go."

Weiss' voice sounded broken; tears had since dried on her cheeks. All the stress had taken a toll on her and she had been crying her eyes out in response, not knowing how to address the situation up to that very moment.

"Weiss. I thought I had warned you about the consequences of disobeying me… You would be wise to just keep quiet and let me deal with this."

The heiress lifted her face to look at her father straight in the eye.

"You have had the upper hand on me for far too long. I have made up my mind. I would rather die free than live as a slave in your sickening game of power plays."

She was about to reach for the discarded sword of an unconscious soldier, when her father bluntly replied with "Guards, take her."

She did not have the time to react. Two men had flanked her and were forcefully dragging her away from the scene.

"Let go of me! Let go of ME! UGH!" She kicked and squirmed and screamed until she was out of sight.

The Schnee Lord turned his attention back to the other problem at hand.

"As for you… If you put up any resistance, she is dead. Did I make myself clear?"

He shot a glance at the brawler, pointing at Ruby with his eyes; Yang's teeth were grinding with fury. Oh, did she want to see this man dead in a pool of his own blood…

After several instants of silence, guards approached both girls and took them by their arms. One of the patrols lifted Yang's brass knuckles from her, to make sure no one else got hurt on the way to the dungeons.

The Schnee lord wiped the little blood left from puncturing Ruby on a white cloth he produced from a hidden pocket, his smile and superior demeanor renewed and vividly present, now that the turmoil had been dealt with. He put the sword away as he beamed with triumph. Victory tasted far too sweet, he thought. So sweet that it had almost been too easy.


	4. Chapter xx

Please refer to this link to get to chapter 4 and 5, and also to the important notice I left behind.

EDIT: this website doesn't allow links in the story section. I just looked this issue up. I will be attempting to post it anyway.  
It's a link on Ao3 since I mainly work through that site for fanfics.

archiveofourown

dot

org

/works/13476783/chapters/43098578

just copy and paste the parts in your browser and replace the dot word with an actual full stop. I apologize for not being able to provide an actual, direct link.

~Useless


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